Monday, 12 March 2012

Jubal

The Sometimes violent story of a driftin' cowhand!

Today we look back at the almost forgotten Delmer Daves western, Jubal.

Glenn Ford is Jubal, an injured rancher who is taken in by Shep Horgan who is played wonderfully by Ernest Borgnine. Jubal gains Shep's trust and is given a place to stay & a job as a cowhand. Borgnine is a lovable character with good intentions but unfortunately blind to what goes on around him. His wife Mae (Valerie French) feels she is trapped in her marriage with shep & takes a shine to Jubal. Mae flirts with Jubal in front of Shep, playing with her hair, even dancing with Jubal while Shep plays piano but Shep is oblivious to this. He's a happy-go-lucky kind of guy & cannot imagine that his wife would ever look further than himself.

Rod Steiger plays 'pinky'. Pinky has worked on the ranch for some time and becomes very jealous of Jubal's relationship with Shep. Until Jubal turned up Pinky was the top man on ranch but now he's being pushed aside as Jubal & Shep become closer & closer. Pinky (who has done more than just flirt around Shep's wife in the past) notices the close relationship between Mae & Jubal & will do anything to get one over Jubal.

Jubal is a under appreciated gem in the western genre. There are some great performances by Glenn Ford, Ernest Borgnine & Rod Steiger. Unfortunately Bronson's role is a small role yet his character grows in importance towards the back end of the picture.

Bronson plays the part of Reb Haislipp, a lone man on his horse who Jubal brings in to work on the ranch. Bronson & Jubal become friends & it is Bronson's character that comes to Jubal's aid when the inevitable goes wrong. It's not a memorable role by any means. With not a great deal of dialogue it's as if the character of Reb was only written as a means to move the plot forward. Still, at this early stage in Bronson's career being able to act alongside the likes of Ford, Borgnine & Steiger can of only improved his confidence in front of established actors & let producers & director's know that he can hold his own alongside anyone.

Recommended as a well paced western with some memorable characters played by some great actors but a forgettable part for Bronson